New investors are sometimes bewildered by the structure of the Canadian stock market today. In reality, it only takes a little time and effort to sort out which of the exchanges handle what types of options. Once you have a handle on where to place orders, knowing how to track different assets and make wise investing decisions will be a little easier. Early Beginnings The history of the stock market in Canada begins before the official founding of the...

As a first time investor, you are excited at the prospect of beginning to build your investment portfolio. While that enthusiasm is certainly an asset, it is important to balance it with the development of several key skills. The right blend of novice investor tips will help you begin on firm footing and gradually build a portfolio that provides you with a solid financial base. Earmarking Funds for Initial Purchases One of the first things you should learn about...

Since the main goal of creating a stock portfolio is to amass financial wealth, it stands to reason that you would want to take practical steps to protect what you have accomplished. While individual stocks will rise and fall as time goes on, you can use several methods to protect the value of your portfolio and ensure that you retain a solid financial base. The right combination of strategies will allow you to weather just about any shift in...

Investing Strategies That Build Wealth

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In the past, accounting involved lots and lots of paperwork and filing cabinets that were filled to the brim with documents and folders. Then, things started to evolve, and businesses started handling all of their accounting “stuff” on the computer. Now, things have evolved even further, and cloud accounting is proving to be one of the best options for accounting, regardless of if your business is small, large or somewhere in-between. These are a few of the many reasons to consider switching to cloud accounting. 1. Share Information with Your Accountant with Ease If you currently work with an accountant (such as one from Burns Valkenburg & Associates) who helps you with tax documents, bookkeeping and more, you might spend a lot of time faxing or emailing documents back and forth with one another. With cloud accounting, things are much easier. Then, you and your accountant can quickly and easily log on and access all of your accounting-related documents. This makes it easy for you to share documents with one another, without having to go through an email or faxing ordeal. 2. Avoid Loss of Important Documents If you were to lose all of your accounting-related documents, chances are good that your business would be in a lot of trouble. Ideally, you’ve always kept your documents backed up, but things can happen to hard drives and USB drives. Luckily, you don’t have to worry about the loss of your important documents when you keep them all on the...

Palm trees are beautiful and can provide you with a tropical oasis right in your backyard. However, you might want to remove one of your palm trees, whether to transplant it elsewhere or because it isn’t a good fit. If you want to remove it without killing it, these tips will help. Wait for the Right Time Before you head out into your backyard and just start removing the palm tree, you need to wait for the right time. This won’t matter as much if you intend to kill the tree and dispose of it or recycle it, but if you don’t want to kill it, the timing is important. The best time of the year for removing a palm tree and keeping it alive is between spring and summer. This allows you enough time to transplant it elsewhere and allow the tree to thrive. Also try to remove palm trees when they are still immature, as they are easier to remove and have a higher likelihood of growing when they are moved. Get the Soil Wet The soil around the tree needs to be as saturated as possible before you pull out the tree. Start watering the root ball of the palm tree beginning several days before you intend to remove it. You need to water it each day leading up to removal to make sure the water soaks deep within the soil. You should begin watering at the root ball, then work out a few feet to...

When you file for bankruptcy, there is a possibility that your bankruptcy estate debts can include your student loans. Whether or not the loans are actually discharged depends on several factors, including when you last attended school. If you are thinking of filing for bankruptcy and want to get rid of your student loans, here is what you need to know:cf Is It Possible to Discharge Student Loans? When a debt is discharged in a bankruptcy, you are no longer responsible for paying back the creditor. In bankruptcy cases, student loans are dischargeable, but you have to meet certain criteria for the debt to be removed. For instance, your bankruptcy filing must be at least seven years after you were last considered to be a part- or full-time student. Can the Time Restriction Be Reduced? In some instances, it is possible that your student loans will qualify to be discharged in a shorter period than the seven years. If you can prove that you have a financial hardship that will prevent you from paying off the student loans, you can ask that the wait time be reduced from seven years to five years. When you request a consideration based on financial hardship, your bankruptcy trustee and the court will pay close attention to whether or not you tried to pay the debt off in good faith and how you used the funds you received for your education. Whether or not you took advantage of the government Repayment Assistance Plan...

Some of the most famous and successful people in history have once been down on their luck and had to file for bankruptcy. If you are considering filing bankruptcy or going through the process right now, you’ll need to know that it’s not over for you and you can still pick up the pieces — and your finances. Influential people like Henry Ford, Walt Disney and Donald Trump all have had to file bankruptcy at one point, and they all bounced back from it. If you are looking to bounce back from your bankruptcy situation and make the most of it, consider some of the following tips. Tip #1: Undergo Credit Counseling One of the best things that you can do in order to fix your life after bankruptcy is speak to a credit counselor who can look out for you. These professionals will be able to comb through your finances and lifestyle habits so that you can learn what you need to do to not end up in this situation again. They will also help set you up with an action plan to eradicate debt creating habits, while streamlining your current finances and helping you stay on top of your bills. Tip #2: Keep Tabs On Your Credit Report If you want to be sure that you’re avoiding mistakes, you will need to know what is laid out in your credit report. This will allow you to also dispute any debt that you don’t believe is applicable. This...

If you’ve had a recent financial upheaval that affected your credit, and thus your ability to get a mortgage, you’re not alone. There are still many people recovering from the recent global economic crisis who would like to buy their own homes. Here are five tips for increasing your odds for making that dream come true. Wait It Out If you can wait a year or two, you can do two major things to help improve the odds of getting a mortgage: improve your credit and build your savings. The first step is to obtain copies of your credit reports from both credit bureaus (Equifax and TransUnion). Look at your debt to credit ratio, and see if you can widen that gap, by creating more available credit and less debt. For most people, this involves paying down their credit card balances. You should also do the following pay off any old collections eliminate any errors by making necessary corrections to your reports avoid additional credit inquiries (don’t apply for more loans, new cards, etc.) monitor your reports for identity theft that could lead to false information If possible, at the same time you work on building your credit, try to increase your savings. The larger the percentage of down payment you can make, the better your chances of getting a mortgage. In some low-priced areas, you might even be able to buy completely with cash. Ask the Big Banks While the big Canadian banks aren’t super friendly towards bad...

If you are ready to start applying for jobs, but your credit report is less than perfect, you may find that you struggle to get employed. There are many employers that will ask permission for an application to investigate information about your criminal background and credit report, so they can get to know you. Instead of being worried about what your credit report shows, or avoiding applying for jobs that you want, you’ll want to work with a credit counselor to fix the problem. There are some easy ways they can help you improve your score quickly, and they can help you set long term goals. Start by finding a counselor and printing out a credit report: Quick Fixes You may find that there are inaccuracies on your credit report, and these blemishes are bringing down your score. If you can prove the blemishes are flawed, the counselor can help you write a letter and work with the credit bureaus to get the items removed. Paying a specific amount on your credit cards, lowering your debt to income ratio, and settling small old debts can also help you improve your score in a short period of time. You may see changes in just a few weeks, which will help if potential employers want to see your credit report. Long Term Options Even though you are going to be applying in the near future, your job search may spread over a few months. You could be improving the score each...